Strawberries and Cream
by Frost Fae
Summary: Following Kagome through the well and into her time, Inuyasha spies her holding a pack of red poison and a bottle of sketchy white stuff. Can he possibly save her?


Disclaimer: I do not own Inuyasha, however the idea for this story was completely original, so don't sue!

A/N: Well, this is just a cute little one-shot about Inuyasha's discovery of the wonder of strawberries and cream. I'm not going to be using the term 'osuwari', I'm just going to use the English version. Please enjoy!

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Strawberries and Cream

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"Inuyasha! I'll just be gone for the weekend!"

"No way... I'm not letting you go!"

"Inuyasha... come here..." Kagome beckoned the dog demon over with one slender digit. Her voice was soft and amiable, and yet, if the boy had paid more attention, he would have seen the dangerous glint in her eyes.

"Yes...?" Walking over to her, he cleared his throat nervously.

--

At the same time, hidden in the leafy forest a few yards away, Sango and Kirara, Miroku and finally a tittering Shippou crouched together.

"He falls for this every time!"

"Should we at least warn him...?"

"Nah... come on, Sango... he deserves it! I'll miss Kagome, too... but that doesn't mean that I'm going to act like a jerk!"

"He's right, Sango... just leave them be."

"But why is his ear twitching? And also he's starting to back away..."

Suddenly, a loud 'SIT' could be heard from the distance; and following after came a deafening thud.

"Well, let's hope he's learned his lesson..."

"Unfortunately for ye, your hope is probably futile."

"Yes, Kaede..." They all said this without turning, and it never occurred to anyone to wonder about Kaede's sudden appearance in the woods.

--

Kagome tilted her nose up in the air with the air of one whose exasperation was at a high and stepped daintily over the fallen Inuyasha.

Raising his head slightly, Inuyasha recovered just as Kagome loosened her grip on the rim of the Bone-Eaters Well. Cursing, he rose slowly and made to jump in after her when he felt arms restrain him.

"Inuyasha, don't. She needs to be with her family. Just because you don't have good connections with _yours_ doesn't mean—" Sango clamped her mouth shut, attempting to repress any foolish words that would bring Inuyasha's wrath upon her... but it was too late...

"_Connections?_ What, you think I should have good connections with my _dead_ parents and a brother who wants _me_ dead?" He inhaled and exhaled sharply. "Why don't _you_ have good connections with your dead parents and possessed brother? Huh?"

Then he wrenched his sore appendages away from his friends' clutches and practically flew down the well.

"Nice going, Sango..."

"I'm sorry, but—Miroku!"

Inuyasha was gone before he could hear the resounding slap that echoed around the clearing. Landing softly on the loamy earth surrounding the magical well, he immediately scampered up the God Tree and relaxed his aching back against a branch.

He had just calmed down when a familiar scent wafted up to his nostrils. Nose twitching, he recognized the fragrance... more tantalizing then the aroma that drifted up from the shrine's kitchen, Kagome smelt of the most well-grown flora, and, strangely-enough, of fresh laundry.

But someone else was with her... someone who smelt like... '_Hobo! It's Hojo!_ No, that can't be it... Homo... or... what the hell, who cares.'

Two voices spoke, and Inuyasha's ears swiveled as they grew nearer.

"Thanks, Hojo! But..."

"But...?"

"Well, there's this boy, and—"

"That's okay, Higurashi... even though I have no recollection of you having any romantic relationships, I can assure you that this gift is purely based on friendship."

"Uh-huh... um... I hear my mom calling me!"

"Really...? I must be getting that ear-check soon. Bye, Higurashi!"

"Bye, Hojo..."

'Her mom didn't call her!' Inuyasha thought.

"Finally... he's gone! Now I can divulge my secret to the world! I DON'T LIKE HOJO! HE'S SO BORING!"

"What was that, Higurashi?"

"Oh, Hojo... you're back... well, I only said that I like you and that you're not boring!"

"I really need that ear-check... I thought your mom was calling you?"

"Of course! Heh-heh... uh... I'm coming mom!"

Mrs. Higurashi stepped out onto the front porch of the Sunset Shrine, wiping her hands on her apron. "I wasn't call—"

"You weren't collaborating with Souta on this lunch? Of course not... Souta can't cook!"

Then so saying, she shouted a hurried farewell to Hojo and flung the door of her home shut behind her.

Inuyasha's quiet chortling went unnoticed of course. Waiting until Hojo's steps finally wavered from his hearing, Inuyasha leaped from the highest branch easily. He surveyed the scene in the kitchen from underneath a window.

Kagome was gently placing a clear pack of... red-somethings on a table. Now she was getting out a bottle of... stuff. Now she was squeezing the top and a white cream was spraying out. Kagome was singing now, so suddenly had it began that Inuyasha fell, splayed out on the ground. Lying on his back now, the boy was unnerved. He got up and watched as she gradually brought one of the things to her mouth. But then...

--

Kagome was just about to experience the raptures of her favourite treat, strawberries and cream, when her mother called her. Then, she grudgingly dropped the fruit back into the bowl, her reluctance clear.

Unfortunately, she didn't see the predatory face that flickered into view in the window frame. She didn't witness the elevation of the window, or the white-haired boy climbing into her kitchen either...

Inuyasha slid through the open window with little difficulty and closed it behind him. Touching his feet onto the cool floor beneath him, Inuyasha slunk stealthily towards the kitchen counter. There was the mystery item that Hoko had given Kagome...

'I have to test these things out! What if they're poisoned? That will mean no more jewel shards... and no more...'

"Kagome..." He breathed those three syllables aloud and tentatively reached for one of the berries.

'This is for you...'

He quickly popped one in his mouth and awaited the end of the world... or worse, a bad taste sensation... but what came was a burst of delicious flavour in his mouth.

'Wha-?'

Quickly, he placed another in his cavernous orifice... and another, and another. And then, just as he was conveying the last one to his mouth, a bewildered yet annoyed Kagome yelled, "My strawberries! Inuyasha!"

An apologetic Inuyasha tore the fruit away from his mouth rapidly and then reached down and smeared it in more cream. Then, aware of the dangerous waters that he was swimming in, he held open Kagome's speechless, yet relenting, mouth with a grasp on her chin, and strategically positioned the strawberry on her tongue. Then he pushed hesitantly on the girl's chin and warily backed away.

Surprisingly, Inuyasha had managed to keep his fingers away from the interior of Kagome's mouth. But something else that was unexpected was that Kagome was now smiling.

"You liked my strawberries? Well... I can get you some more if you want. We still have enough whipped cream, but I can just walk to the store to get some more strawberries...?" She phrased the last part as a question, and repeatedly scuffed her brown loafers on the tiled floor.

--

Mrs. Higurashi was not pleased with this method of fidgeting, but she found herself beaming nonetheless.

'Those grandchildren are going to come soon enough!' She thought happily as she hid from behind the doorframe. She had seen Inuyasha, and she had called Kagome for the single purpose that Inuyasha could sneak into the house.

Yuriko Higurashi was still as devious as she had been as a young woman.

She carefully walked away from the door, and then walked back loudly. This would give her daughter and her 'beau' enough time to ready themselves.

"Why, hello there, Inuyasha! I didn't see you come in. Would you like some home-baked cookies?"

Inuyasha had just discovered the scrumptious taste of Higurashi-baked goods the last time. He shook his head 'no', and proceeded to explain the reason.

"Oh! Okay. Why don't I go to the store instead and you spend some... 'quality' time with Kagome, here?"

"Mom! No, thanks... Inuyasha, you go play video games with Souta... we just got an X Box. I'm sure you'll like it just as much as the Play Station."

And with that she almost trampled poor Buyo's tail in her haste to get out and going.

--

Souta was cheerfully defeating Inuyasha at every turn. Every level. Every game.

At the moment they were playing Fuzion Frenzy and Inuyasha was just about to triumph when—

"Inuyasha! Come on. I got the strawberries."

"Huh? Sh... I'm winning."

"Inuyasha!"

"_What?_"

"Come on..." she said in a softer tone.

"Okay, let me just—" turning back to the game, he saw that he had actually came last in the Watergate mini-game. "No! I was _winning_!"

Souta snickered, and Inuyasha promptly unplugged the game console. "Hey! That was my highest score in... ever!"

But Inuyasha just continued to walk towards the kitchen, leaving the devastated boy to whimper out his sorrow.

--

'I've got to get those strawberries for myself...'

"Hey, Inuyasha... since you've been so nice to me today," her back was turned... this was his chance, "I've decided that you can have the whole pa—"

Inuyasha scooped up the pack of strawberries, along with the can of whipped cream and swung himself out of the house and onto the soft turf by propping himself up onto the window.

All of it had happened in a red and white blur to Kagome, and by the time she had finished washing the remaining residue off of a plastic container for Inuyasha to keep, he was gone.

Throwing the plastic basin back into the sink, she took off, forgetting that there was a door.

She was out of the kitchen in a moment however, albeit with a few bumps to the head from the low window, and she ran swiftly towards the Bone-Eaters well. Inuayasha had jumped through already and now she curbed her reckless anger just enough so that she could make it safely over the edge.

She practically flew down and out of the well, now in the Sengoku Jidai. Crossing her arms as she saw an enchanted Inuyasha staring at an almost empty pack of strawberries and attempting to shake more whipped cream out of its can, Kagome tapped him on the shoulder.

Cringing when he saw who it was, he took out the last strawberry and managed to spray some cream on it. She smiled then, but obviously she had moved too soon... the tempting promise of one more strawberry presented itself to Inuyasha.

He popped it into his mouth.

"Inuyasha...?"

"Yes?"

She started to laugh. "That was so funny! Wasn't it funny?"

"Keh..." But he laughed in spite of himself, Kagome's fits (whether happy or angry or even sad) were always contagious.

"And do you know what's even funnier?"

Inuyasha innocently shook his head.

"Well, Inuyasha... the funny thing is that I'm going to say something."

Inuyasha was still as witless as ever... "What?"

--

The others had wisely stayed still in the forest when Inuyasha leaped out of the well hurriedly as if an angry Kagome was on his heels... Which, of course... she was.

"He's such an IDIOT sometimes! I mean, sometimes he's so profound and then—"

"And then he proves the theory that you can't be ALL smart..." Miroku interrupted her with a frustrated air about him.

"But it's funny to watch so—"

"Shippou! Ye can't be serious..."

"Kaede? What have you been doing here? I just realized that you always frown upon spying on the two."

"Well, Miroku... I need some entertainment, too!"

"Sh! It's coming soon." Sango put a finger up to her mouth and seemed to stop breathing.

Sure enough, there came a 'SIT', and then... a thud.

Kagome stomped away from Inuyasha, making sure to throw the empty plastic package at him. She jumped into the well.

Inuyasha rose hazily. He didn't chase after her as expected. All he said was, "Enough entertainment for you? Whatever... the strawberries were well worth the trouble."

In the rest of the group's clouded judgment of Inuyasha's intellect, they had forgotten that he had superior hearing.

--

If anyone had passed by afterwards... all they would have seen was a hanyou walking nonchalantly away from a well, an old priestess hiding behind a bush with a demon-slayer, and also... most interesting of all... a monk and a small kitsune hanging by their robe and tail respectively.

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A/N: So, how was that? My first ever one-shot, so please be gentle! It was fun writing it though, and I wrote it in an hour so be proud! Plus, I don't think there will be that many mistakes... Please read and review!


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